Railway axle journal bearing with wear inserts



Jan. 16, 1968 F. B. RYKOSKEY 3,363,951

RAILWAY AXLE JOURNAL BEARING WITH WEAR INSERTS Filed April 29, 1965 34 FIG. 7

United States Patent 3,363,951 RAILWAY AXLE JOURNAL BEARING WITH WEAR INSERTS Francis B. Rykoslrey, 46 Thornhill Road, Lutherville, Md. 21093 Filed Apr. 29, 1965, Ser. No. 451,924 4 Claims. (Cl. 308-79) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A railway journal bearing having a wear resistant insert in its end face, there being cooperating oil-collecting grooves in said end face and insert for returning to the supply source oil tending to escape from the bearing surface.

The invention relates to a railway truck axle box solid hearing such as is illustrated generally in US. Patent 2,969,259 issued January 24, 1961. Such a bearing is seated on an axle journal between a collar and an axle fillet spaced apart lengthwise of the journal a greater distance than the length of the bearing to provide for necessary play of the bearing and the box supported on it transversely of the truck and this play is subject to undesirable increase in the useful life of the truck due to the impact and relative rotational movements of the hearing, and more particularly its relatively soft liner, and the journal collar and fillet. Such wear is particularly objectionable when the ends of the journal are grooved, as disclosed in the above-mentioned patent, to gather oil moving over the bearing and return the oil to the sump formed by the lower portion of the journal box and prevent its discharge through the openings in the box walls.

The main object of the present invention is to avoid or reduce the wear on the ends of the hearing or hearing liner. This object is attained by placing inserts of wearresisting material such as a plastic, preferably having selflubricating characteristics, in the hearing at points of its contact with the axle fillet and collar and thereby avoiding a tendency to dull the edges of the oil-collecting grooves. Preferably the inserts have cooperating oil-collecting grooves.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating the invention:

FIG. 1 is a vertical longitudinal section through the upper part of a railway axle journal and a journal box mounted thereon by a solid bearing grooved and reinforced as indicated above. The section is on line 1-1 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a rear end view of the bearing unit, looking in the direction of arrow 2 in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a detail section on line 3-3 of FIG. 2 and is drawn to a larger scale.

FIG. 4 is a front end view of the bearing unit, looking in the direction of arrow 4 in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a view looking in the direction of arrow 5 in FIG. 1.

FIGS. 6 and 7 are longitudinal sections on lines 6--6 and 77 of FIG. 4 and are drawn to a larger scale.

The axle includes a wheel seat portion 11, a dry seat 12 and a journal 13. A fillet 14 connects the dry seat and journal. A similar fillet connects the journal and a collar 15. The axle box 17 is supported on the journal through a bearing 18, including a liner 19, and a wedge 20, the rear end of the liner being convexly rounded corresponding to the concavity of fillet 14.

The axle parts, box, bearing, and wedge are of usual construction and follow established Association of American Railroads (A.A.R.) designs but are shown with grooves in the ends of the bearing for gathering surplus lubricating oil moving toward the ends of the bearing "ice and returning it to the journal load-supporting surface, as described in the above-mentioned patent.

An arcuate groove 25 in the end portion of the bearing facing fillet 14 extends arcuately transversely of the length of the hearing, from one side to the other, and one or more radial grooves 26 intersect groove 25 and lead oil collected thereby back to the lower face of the hearing. The bearing and liner are grooved concentrically with groove 25 to form a recess receiving a wear-resisting insert element 28 of harder material than that of the liner 19 and having self-lubricating characteristics, such as fluorocarbon resins, nylon, polypropylene and polyvinylidine fluoride.

The outer face of the insert is convexly rounded to form a continuation of the end of the bearing and this insert face is grooved at 29 in alignment with hearing grooves 26, and for the same purpose as the latter.

The other end of the bearing is shouldered at 31 and thus forms an arcuate recess inwardly of the collar. Substantially radial grooves 32 extend the full thickness of the hearing at the recess and return oil moving past the end of the bearing back to the load-supporting face of the journal or to the sump formed by the lower portion of the journal box. Spacedangularly of the hearing from grooves 32 are elements 34 inserted into the bearing with their outer ends shaped to the contour of the end of the liner, but the liner end and each insert end are more nearly square than the corresponding parts at the other end of the hearing.

In either arrangement the inserts better resist the impacts and relative rotary movements between the hearing and the axle parts and protect the edges of the bearing grooves from being blunted readily. The inserts may have their sides tapered outwardly or undercut so as to key into the bearing metal for more secure retention, and other contours may be used to attain this result. An insert may be pressed into a recess which is cut or drilled into the bearing or the insert may be placed or poured into a mold at the time the bearing is formed. The inserts increase bearing life because the self-lubrication feature reduces end wear beyond condemnation limits set by A.A.R. standards. When the bearing is riding hard against the fillet or collar at the ends of the journal, particularly on excessive curvature of the railroad track, there is a tendency for oil to be squeezed out at the point of contact between bearing and collar or fillet.

The details of the shape and positions of the inserts may be varied substantially from the drawings while retaining the spirit of the invention and the exclusive use of those modifications coming within the scope of the claims is contemplated.

What is claimed is:.

1. A railway axle journal solid bearing member including a liner of soft metal material having a journal-engaging surface which is concavely arcuate in cross section transversely of the length of the bearing member, the member having an end portion including a terminal end face forming an upwardly and outwardly convexly rounded continuation of said surface and shaped and adapted to engage a fillet of an axle journal, and an end thrust-resisting element of difierent material having greater wear resisting qualities inserted in said member end portion with an outer surface substantially flush with and continuing said terminal end face, said end portion having a groove elongated circumferentially of the member axis and disposed to collect oil moving lengthwise of the journalengaging surface and also having a groove extending radially of said axis and intersecting the first-mentioned groove for leading oil back to the journal-engaging surface, and the thrust-resisting element has a radial groove in alignment with said first-mentioned radial groove.

2. A railway axle journal solid bearing member according to claim 1 in which the terminal end face including the insert has a plurality of radial grooves spaced apart lengthwise of the elongated groove and intersecting the latter at points near the sides of the bearing to provide unobstructed channels leading to the journal-engaging surface of the member.

3. A railway axle journal solid bearing member including a liner having a journal-engaging surface which is concavely arcuate in cross section transversely of the length of the bearing member, said surface being provided at each end of said member and having an upwardly and outwardly convexly rounded terminal face shaped and adapted to engage a fillet at the corresponding end of an axle journal, there being an elongated groove in the member end extending substantially concentrically of said surface to trap oil moving over said terminal face away from said surface lengthwise of the member, and a plurality of antiwear elements spaced apart lengthwise of said elongated groove and extending into the member perpendicularly to a tangent of the intermediate portion of said convexly spaced terminal face, there :being grooves leading from said elongated groove to the lower portion of said terminal face.

4. A railway axle journal solid arcuate bearing mem ber including a liner having a journal-engaging surface which is concavely arcuate in cross section transversely of its length, said surface being provided at one end of the bearing member with an upwardly extending terminal face adapted to engage a fillet at the end of an axle journal, there being an elongated arcuate groove in said terminal face extending circumferentially of the axis of the bearing member to trap oil moving over said terminal face, and an element of relatively high resistance material inserted into said terminal face, there being spaced apart grooves in said terminal face, said spaced apart grooves extending radially of said axis and each opening at its upper end into said arcuate groove and opening at its lower end toward said journal bearing surface.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,398,220 11/ 1921 Acheson 308-239 2,105,038 1/1938 Helwig 308240 X 2,969,259 1/1961 Rykoskey et al 30879.1 3,062,599 11/1962 Campbell 308-239 3,149,405 9/1964 Dolan 308239 X FOREIGN PATENTS 316,860 12/1919 Germany.

878,772 10/1961 Great Britain.

242,418 10/ 1946 Switzerland.

MARTIN P. SCHWADRON, Primary Examiner.

R. F. HESS, Assistant Examiner. 

